Boat and barge combination



Oct. 10, 1967 L. H. DE LONG BOAT AND BARGE COMBINATION 2 Sheets Sheet 1 Filed March 28, 1966 INVENTOR LOUIS H. DsLONG Oct. 10, 1967 L. H. DE LONG 3,345,970

BOAT AND BARGE COMBINATION Filed March 28, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR LOUIS H. DE LONG United States Patent Ofiiice 3,345,970 Patented Oct. 10, 1967 3,345,970 BOAT AND BARGE COMBENATION Louis H. De Long, 1 Crabapple Court, Olivette, Mo. 63132 Filed Mar. 28, 1966, Ser. No. 538,046 1 Claim. (Cl. 114-235) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A boatand barge combination which can be rigidly connected together as a single unit and which can be separated into independent units so that the boat will function as the motive force for several barges.

expense.

In recent years the cost of marine shipments has risen due to the increased cost of construction of the ships as well as the maintenance thereof. Ocean-going ships have been relatively fast sailing from port to port but frequently were tied up in port for a week or ten days while the cargo was unloaded and a new cargo was loaded. During this time longshoremen Would unload and load the ship while the crew was engaged in non-productive work such as painting and the like.

Some efforts have been made for loading the commodities on a barge and pushing or pulling the barge by a tugboat orworkboat. This would permit the tugboat to move the barge to an unloading area after which the tugboat was free to do other work, including connecting t one or more loaded barges for a return trip. This system of marine transportation has worked reasonably well on rivers and other inland waterways; however, has not been satisfactory forocean-going shipments due mainly to the action of winds; waves and tides. In open water it has been necessary for the tugboat to pull the barge on a relatively long cable or hawser. Since barges lack directional stability they have failed to track behind the tugboat and consequently it has been necessary to reduce the speed of travel. In order to increase the stability of the barges, skegs and other appendages and protuberances have been mounted thereon; however, these have increased the r sistance of the barge through the water and consequently reduced the speed or have required greater power by th tugboat to pull the same load capacity.

It is an object of the invention to provide a combination boat and barge, each constructed as an independent unit but which can be connected together as an integral unit by means of quickly attachable rigid connecting means.

Another object of the invention is to provide a combination boat and barge in which the barge has a recess f a configuration to receive the major portion of the tugboat and means for receiving rigid connections carried by the tugboat.

A further object of the invention is to provide a combination boat and barge constructed as independent units but which can be rigidly connected together and when so connected will have substantially a continuous hydrodynamic configu-ration which can be streamlined to obtain the most efiicient shape consistent with cargo capacity and lack of resistance in the water.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the boat and barge combination in assembled relation;

FIG. 2, a side elevation thereof with portions broken away;

FIG. 3, a fragmentary side elevation illustrating the boat and barge separated;

FIG. 4, an enlarged section on the line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5, an enlarged section on the line 5-5 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 6, an enlarged section on the line 66 of FIG. 4.

With continued reference to the drawings, a tugboat 10 is provided including a hull 11 having a keel 12. A superstructure 13 including a pilothouse 14 is mounted on th hull 11. The tugboat 10 is powered by any conventional power plant (not shown) which turns at least one propeller shaft having a propeller 15 on the outer end thereof. The direction of travel of the tugboat is controlled by steering rudders 16 and if desired by flanking rudders 17.

A barge 19 is provided for carrying cargo and such barge includes a hull 20 covered by a main deck 21 with one or more hatches 22 thereon providing access to the interior of the barge in a conventional manner. The barge may have any desired hydrodynamic configuration which combines the least resistance to passage through the water with the most economical cargo capacity. The stern portion of the barge 19 is provided with a recess 23 of a configuration corresponding substantally to the configuration of the bow portion of the tugboat 10. The recess 23 is defined by side plates 24 extending from the main deck 21 downwardly to a central member 25 which is fabricated or constructed to conform to the keel 12 and central portion of the tugboat 10. The central member 25 has a groove 26 extending the full length and being of a size t receive the keel 12 of the tugboat. Such central member 25 is supported by a plurality of braces 27 to rigidly fiX such member in position. One or more sockets 28 ar mounted on the side plates 24 adjacent to each side f the central member 25 and a plurality of sockets 28 ar mounted on the side plates 24 on each side of the recess 23 adjacent to the stern of the barge 19. Such sockets may be supported in any desired manner (not shown). Each socket includes a recess 29 which may be tapered as shown or generally cylindrical and disposed in alignment with an opening 30 in the side plates 24.

The tugboat 10 is adapted to be received snugly within the recess 29 with the keel 12 disposed within the groove 26. In order to rigidly connect the tugboat to the barge 19, a plurality of extendable and retractable pins 31 are mounted on the tugboat in a position to be aligned with the recesses 29 of the sockets 28. Each pin 31 is carried by a guide block 32 welded or otherwise attached to side plates 33 of the tug. Such guide block has an opening 34 extending through the same for the slidable reception of the pin 31, the opening 34 being in alignment with an opening 35 in the side plates 33.

A waterproof generally cylindrical housing 36 is fixed to each guide block 32 generally concentric with the opening 34. The opposite end of the housing 36 is closed by an end plate 37 having an opening 38 and a packing gland or seal 39 therein through which a piston rod 40 extends. One end of the piston rod is connected to the pin 31 and the opposite end is fixed to a piston 41 within a cylinder 42 having fluid lines 43 at opposite ends through which fluid under pressure is introduced into the cylinder for moving the piston in either direction. The fluid under pressure is supplied to the lines 43 from any suitable source (not shown) and controlled from the pilothouse 14.

The barge is adapted to be trimmed around a point approximately at the stern of the tugboat 10 when the barge and boat are in assembled relation. When the barge is loaded, the waterline will be approximately along the line indicated at 44 in FIG. 2, and when the barge is empty, the Waterline will be approximately along the line indicated at 45.

In the operation of the device, the barge is loaded and trimmed about a point abaft the stern so that the waterline is substantially along the line 44. When the tugboat is available, it is nosed into the recess 29 and moved forwardly until the stem and the keel 12 are received within the groove 26 of the central member 25. After the tugboat is in position, fluid is introduced into the cylinders 42 from the pilothouse 14 to cause the pins 31 to extend outwardly into the sockets 28. As long as the pins 31 are located within the sockets 28, the tugboat 10 and barge 19 will be rigidly connected together and neither can move relative to the other in any direction. The tugboat then can move the barge to a port of discharge regardless of whether the movement is by inland waterway or open sea. As soon as the tugboat has delivered the barge to the unloading dock the pins 31 are retracted and the tugboat backs out of the recess 23 and thereafter can be put into eflicient use, such as connecting itself to another barge which is either loaded with cargo or which has taken on ballast for the return trip.

It is noted that a slight discrepancy would exist in the location of the waterline in the area of the stern of th barge when the barge is loaded and When the barge is empty. This slight discrepancy can be overcome by the shifting, taken on or discharging ballast from the tugboat so that the tugboat will fit Within the recess 23 of the barge. Also it is contemplated that when the ports of call are a substantial distance apart or a distance greater than the fuel capacity of the tugboat, fuel for the tugboat could be carried in bunkers in the stern portion of the barge so that fuel could be transferred from the barge to the tugboat while underway.

It will be obvious to one skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the accompanying claim.

What is claimed is:

A boat and barge combination which can be rigidly connected together as a single unit for moving from place to place and which can be separated into multiple independent units when desired, comprising a boat having a hull with a stem portion and midship portion and stern portion, said hull having a predetermined configuration, a keel projecting outwardly from at least said stem portion and said midship portion, a first pair of fluid operated pin means mounted in said stem ortion adjacent to said keel, means operable from a remote position for extending and retracting said first pin means relative to said stem portion, at least a second pair of fluid operated pin means mounted in said midship portion and spaced from said first pin means, means operable from a remote position for extending and retracting said second pair of pin means relative to said midship portion, a barge having a stern portion With a recess therein, said recess being complementary to the configuration of the stem and midship portions of said boat, a central member disposed in said recess along the longitudinal center line of said barge, said central member having a groove extending substantially the full length thereof, a first pair of sockets mounted in said barge adjacent to said recess for receiving said first pin means, at least a second pair of sockets mounted in said barge adjacent to said recess for receiving said second pin means, said barge being trimmed about a point rearwardly of said recess, whereby said boat can be moved into said recess With the keel of the boat located within the groove of said central member and said first and second pin means are extended into said sockets from a remote position ot rigidly connect said boat to said barge so that said barge can be moved to a point of unloading and thereafter said pin means are retracted from said 30 sockets and said boat and barge are separated.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 20,944 7/1858 Gibson 114 235 23,010 2/1859 Burling 114 235 75,645 3/1868 Raymond etal 114 235 1,458,134 6/1923 Constan 114 235 2,375,139 5/1945 Schmitt 61; al. 114 77 3,035,536 5/1962 Archer 114 77 OTHER REFERENCES Popular Sciene Publication, April 1951, pp. 110 and 111.

45 MILTON BUCHLER, Primary Examiner.

T. M. BLIX, Assistant Examiner. 

